@CTIA: AT&T execs use keynote to layout mobile broadband needs

LAS VEGAS – AT&T Inc. bum rushed the opening keynote at the 2010 CTIA event with president and CEO of its mobile division, Ralph de la Vega and chairman, CEO and president Randall Stephenson holding stage for the events opening remarks.
De la Vega, who is also serving as chairman of CTIA this year, used his time on stage to highlight the leadership the United States has taken around the world in mobile broadband, including next-generation networks, subscribers and innovation. De la Vega did an admirable job representing the trade organization by not limiting his praise of leadership in the domestic wireless market to just his own employer, citing Verizon Wireless’ plans, though not by name, to begin deploying LTE technology this year on a wide scale as well as an agreement Sprint Nextel Corp. had formed with an application provider on a new platform.
While de la Vega and Stephenson seemed to have their own set of notes, they both targeted specific subjects centered on governmental regulation, spectrum allocation and capital investment and the importance of the three to the mobile industry.
To little surprise, both were big on the government having the smallest impact possible on regulating the wireless industry, an appropriate statement from a company whose history was drastically altered by governmental decisions on how it would operate. Both de la Vega and Stephenson noted the success of the wireless industry with what to this point has been minimal government regulation and their wish that the status quo remain.
Following their requests that the government stay out their affairs, both also pleaded with the government to free up additional spectrum to meet the booming demand for wireless broadband services. Praise was heaped on the Federal Communications Commission’s recent broadband plan that calls for up to 500 megahertz of additional wireless spectrum to be freed up for mobile services over the next decade, but pressed that those plans needed to be held on a tight timeline. The demand for spectrum resources also brought out reference to Cisco Systems Inc.’s (over)used report on mobile broadband adoption over the next five years. (Not sure if Cisco gets a royalty for each time that report is mentioned in a keynote, press release or in casual conversation, but that might be something they look into.)
One key de la Vega noted that could help suppress some of that spectrum crunch is the embedded efficiency of LTE technology, which he said was up to 2.5 times more efficient than HSPA-based mobile broadband services when using a wide, 20-megahertz spectrum channel.
With the first two issues in place, Stephenson took time to emphasize that the continued flow of capital from the private sector would continue to help fund the deployment demands to support continued consumer adoption of mobile services.
De la Vega cited $20 billion in investments that were made in wireless networks in 2009 during one of the worst economic downturns in history, an investment that CTIA claims generated around 250,000 jobs. Stephenson said that more than $340 billion in private investments were injected into the telecommunications space over the past five years.
“If we get these right, the U.S. will continue to lead the world,” Stephenson summed up.